O’Loughlin Catholic College Karama: Principal speaks after trio of incidents rocks school
It can be revealed that last week’s lockdown of a Darwin college after a 13-year-old jumped the fence and attacked four students was the third serious incident in six weeks faced by the school community.
Northern Territory
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A Catholic college in Darwin that was locked down earlier this week when a teenager jumped the fence and attacked four students faced two other serious incidents in recent weeks, it can be revealed.
According to messages obtained by the NT News, O’Loughlin Catholic College, located at Karama, disclosed concerning episodes to parents on February 16 and March 13.
The February 16 message disclosed that two days prior, a student was subjected to a “violent assault” just after she disembarked a Route 207 bus at Muirhead.
“It appears to be a random attack by a group of young people, who have been uploading footage of similar attacks to social media platform,” the message to school parents read.
“All details of the incident have been reported to police by the family and the school.
“Please rest assured we are providing full support to the student and her family during this difficult time.”
A month later, on March 13, parents were contacted again, this time in relation to a group of three young people “aggressively” entering the front gate of the school from Mueller Rd “after a rock-throwing incident with a taxi”.
“Our staff quickly identified the situation and promptly enacted our safety protocols,” Principal Megan Evans said in an email.
“I am pleased to report that they did not enter the school grounds as such and all students and staff remained safe throughout the incident.
She assured the school community safety and security was taken “very seriously,” with procedures regularly reviewed and updated.”
“Today’s incident serves as a reminder of the importance of remaining vigilant and prepared for unexpected situations.”
Such preparation was required on Wednesday, when a 13-year-old unknown to the school jumped the fence off Mueller Rd and assaulted four students, prompting a lockdown.
NT Police has not yet publicly revealed whether the teen suspect was apprehended and charges laid.
Ms Evans, the principal, told the NT News criminal incursions into school life were still “unusual for us,” notwithstanding the college’s recent history.
“However, we are becoming more aware of community violence,” she said.
“It is for this reason that we are more vigilant in responding and taking precautionary actions.
“We want our students to feel safe at school and we are therefore continuously trying to improve on the things we can control.”
One of the things in the school’s control is being as “transparent” as possible with parents.
“We know that a strong partnership with parents will best place us in a strong position to support the safety and wellbeing of our students,” Ms Evans said.
It’s not just students facing the brunt of violence in the Territory.
The recently released Australian Principal Occupational Health, Safety and Wellbeing Survey revealed 61.8 per cent of the Territory’s principals had been threatened with violence.
Ms Evans, who commenced as a principal in the Territory in 2018, said although she was an irregular victim, it was “unfortunate when it happens”.
“We are dealing with situations where we are managing people in a heightened state of emotion,” she said.
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